Gotham Knights
by kidstandout
Summary: a series of oneshots featuring the bat family
1. Chapter 1

"You know when we really think about this, these 'meetings' never make any type of sense."

As Catwoman told him this, Batman had broken from his daze as he was reminded of her naked(well if you don't count the cowls) form currently resting on top of his as they laid on the floor of her apartment.

"And I know how much you like having everything figured out bats."

"I'd like to figure you out but honestly I have no idea where to start."

There was a lot of truth to that statement, even though he's known her for quite some time; Selina is still a total mystery to him. Which was ironic considering she less about him than he does about her. There really is a difference between knowing and understanding

Their experiences together consist of going from chasing each other on rooftops to forced kinship to this…

And that's when it hits her.

"Maybe a clue lies in what happens after this."

Understanding what she meant, Batman had an epiphany. It occurred to him why they were trapped in this endless waltz, he was an emotionally stunted loner.

And so was she…

Everytime one of them made the attempt to push things further, the other would resist.

"Perhaps the reason this honeymoon phase never lasts is because we're terrible at compromising."

"Or maybe we don't want to be happy."

He notices the depressive tone in her voice during that last statement, and it's there for good reason. Both of them understood that with happiness comes pain, something made apparent to them by their tragic lives. But as much as he tried to deny it, there were some bright spots as well.

"Nightwing, Red Hood and Robin were all troubled youths that I took in, no different from you and me. I took a big risk by letting them in, but somewhere down the line I forgot why I took that risk. I wanted to give them the privilege of having someone to put them on the right path, to be the father that I didn't have. I don't know when it happened but the risks overshadowed my goal, and when I almost lost them, I found something even worse than the risks."

"What was that?"

He turns and looks at her with his hands approaching his cowl, understanding he was approaching the point of no return.

"Never getting the chance to be happy."

Selina's heart is racing, she's knows what he's about to do but her body feels paralyzed. Part of her is afraid of what comes next, but the other part is screaming with excitement.

What she saw next truly shocked her; underneath the cowl was a pair of sky blue eyes resting under onyx black hair. The face of the man next to her belonged to none of than Bruce Wayne.

Selina was truly speechless; she had to put a palm on his cheek to make sure this was real. Then Selina ripped of her own cowl and kissed him with a sense of passion Bruce didn't know she was capable of. But that's to be expected with her, once he solves one part of the mystery, another one pops up.


	2. Chapter 2

Nightwing stood on the ledge of an apartment building, eagerly awaiting his former mentor. He was getting antsy; Batman's request to see him in action was cutting into his patrol time.

"I see things are starting to improve in bludhaven."

Dick turned around to be greeted by a stoically positioned Bruce with his cowl on and his fists clenched.

"You know it still irks me when you do that, a simple 'hey Nightwing' will do for an entrance."

"By now you should know when I'm behind you."

"Anyway, what did you want?"

"I just wanted to touch bases with you and see how you are doing with your new territory."

"It's going as well as one could expect, I'm a long way from bringing the crime rate to par with Gotham's. I'd be a step closer if I was scouting out the streets right now."

"I see, let's get moving then."

Nightwing stood there dumbfounded as Batman approached the ledge with his grappling hook in hand.

"What do you mean let's."

"You know me; I want a hands on look at Bludhaven's underbelly so we'll go on patrol together. It will be like the good ol days."

Suddenly a smirk crept up on Nightwing's face.

"A one night only featuring the classic dynamic duo? Count me in."

The two heroes jumped off the ledge and fired their grappling hooks in unison. As swung from building to building, a strong sense of nostalgia overcame them. It felt like just the other day Dick was in his boy wonder apparel.

Suddenly static escaped the police radio transmitter mounted in Dick's wrist.

"All available squads, residents are reporting a disturbance in the bludhaven central residential area."

"Sounds like we have our first call of the night."

"I'll race ya, just try and keep up Bruce."

"Same to you Dick."

The dynamic duo hopped from the building. Batman did so in a more practical way, simply leaping from one ledge to another. Nightwing was more extravagant; pulling off twists and flips effortlessly.

His acrobat abilities never failed to impress Bruce, though there were times Dick could be a bit over zealous with them. None the less, when situation called for it dick always utilized them to the fullest and that's all Bruce could ask for.

When they arrived at the suburb, there were several thugs of the biker gang variety harassing some female pedestrians as they walked by.

"I think it's time we introduce our…."

As he Dick was saying this, Batman already leapt off the apartment building they were standing on to attack the vagabonds.

"It's amazing how much that still irks me."

One of the bikers tried harassing another female bystander when he was suddenly kicked in the head by Batman. The other 2 next to them tried to hit Bruce but were struck from behind by Nightwing using his batons. More of the thugs spilled onto the scene, circling around the dynamic duo.

"12 on 2, seems like an unfair fight."

Batman cracked his knuckles before calmly responding.

"Yeah… for them."


	3. Chapter 3

"These guys aren't bad, this circus is no haly's, but it's pretty entertaining Babs."

"And to think I found about this place before you did and you've been here in bludhaven boy blunder?"

"Hey, that's male blunder to you."

Dick and Barbara sat back with popcorn and cotton candy in their hands as they enjoyed the sight of tigers jumping through hoola hoops. It was a nice change of from their nightly activities.

Dick was thankful Bludhaven was practically a suburb of Gotham. Part of the reason adjusting to the new area was because of it being devoid of opportunities to run in to his favorite emerald pupiled redhead. And he wasn't a fan of the long distance relationship thing.

So Dick decided to fix that by asking her out on a date every Friday or two. But while it was it was dicks area they chose this week, Barbara got to pick the place.

'Leave it her to pick the best place so far' He thought.

The performers were gearing up for their grand finale, the acrobat exposition. The athletes all dressed in white stood in the catwalks high above the crowds as they approached the tight rope.

Barbara marveled at the Dick's expression; He smiled with a childlike glee as the acrobats walked across it ease knowing what to come next, the swings.

"Okay I admit it, best date idea yet babs."

"And you had the nerve to doubt me."

**{Scene break}**

After the show, they walked back to Dick's apartment through the semi vacant streets. Tonight was a great night for star gazers as the moon was full and there were stars a plenty. So much so that Barbara convinced him to take a 'shortcut' through the park.

'Why am I not surprised she knows my new home turf better than me' Dick thought.

The two young adults came upon a bench where they decided to sit down for a bit.

"Tonight was fun Dick; it's just what I needed."

"Same, hopefully next Friday I can top it."

"Dick I can't… next Friday is when I make the jump."

That had slipped his mind; dick totally forgot that Barbara was taking on her own turf as well. It only made sense that if the first Boy wonder flew the coup, that the first female caped crusader of Gotham follow suit.

Dick wasn't worried though; she was more than ready to take on the responsibility. The one thing him, Jason, Tim and even Damian (Though he's too proud to ever say it, the smug little brat) is that Babs was the complete package amongst the Batman's wards.

"It's okay, besides I can you help you move."

"Don't expect a delivery fee bird boy."

"I have other ways of collecting what I'm due."

"Oh really…"

Babs is about to continue her sly assault, but Dick stops her with his lips pressing against her. And just like that, they were taken back to their teenager days, both figuratively and literally.


	4. Chapter 4

It was Barbara's last night on patrol before the big move. She was going to miss her old stomping grounds here in Gotham.

To prevent her from becoming too nostalgia obsessed on patrol, she asked Cassandra to tag along with her. Although the lack of conversational skill beyond a few sentences at a time on Cass's part didn't help much.

But that wasn't the only reason she brought her out here.

"Hey Cass, I need to tell you something."

The two batgirls took a rest at the top of an apartment. Cass leaned against the door to the apartment stairwell and with her arms crossed, indicating that Barbara had the floor to speak.

"Me leaving is a big change to deal with, but not just for myself but also you and Steph. I'm going to miss the batgirl squad we had going on. But with this amigo heading out on her own, it means one of you is going to have to step up and fill the void. And I believe that should be you, which is why I wanted to give you this."

Barbara handed her a black domino mask. Cassandra took a minute to examine the mask but was unable to get what Barbara was getting at.

"Why."

"I want you to start forging your own destiny. I've decided to take up a new name, and I think you're ready to start building up one of your own. I even have a new costume to go with my new alias that's more leather and boots, less tights and heels. Maybe, you can come up with a new look as well."

"…Stephanie?"

"She could still use some mentoring, and I believe you can be the one to do it. Besides, there needs to be a Batgirl."

Cass stared long and hard at the domino mask; it was shaped like a black bat and was a little rough around the edges. Letting Barbara's words sink in, she looked up and made her decision.

"I'll do it."

Putting her hand on Cassandra's shoulder, Barbra praised her once more.

"I know you'll do a great Job."

"…..Your new name?"

"Oh yea, for now on you can call me Oracle!"

As Cass nodded in confirmation, a cry for help escaped the streets below them.

"Help! Thieves! I have just been robbed! They took my purse!"

The two crime fighters notice two thugs running off down the street in the direction the woman indicated.

"And here I was thinking it would be a quiet finale to my tenure here. Let's go Cass."

The two heroines deployed their grappling hooks and swung off the ledge, quickly intercepting the fleeing thugs with ease. By the time one of them senses them coming it's too late, they were struck by kicks to their back.

The two thugs pull out knives to attack them, feeling a sudden resurgence of balls.

That was until Cass turned one of thug's knife against him by stabbing him in the arm. The other one tried to flee, only to be struck by a batarang in the back of the head courtesy of Babs.

"I'd say you two bozos are lucky I'm leaving Gotham, but with my partner running the show now, that be lie."

"I think I'm going to be bleed out."

"…just an arm, you'll live."


	5. Chapter 5

"Again!"

"Can't I take a break, I've been on patrol all week and I'm tired."

"…..less wangst, more practice!"

Cassandra was not letting up on Tim during their sparring session today. While Jason and Damian (to a lesser extent) could hold their own, Tim's martial art prowess leaves plenty to be desired. He is smart; she just wanted his body to make use of it as well as his brain.

Commencing another impromptu sparing match in the bat-cave, Cassandra charged towards Tim and throws a left hook. Tim is able to block it and attempts to counter it with an uppercut. Cassie dodges it quickly performs a leg sweep, sending Tim crashing to the floor.

"Ugh"

"…You did better."

"Does lasting a couple seconds longer really count?"

She smiled as she gave him a hand in getting up.

"…Yes."

Cass then gave him a small peck on his cheek as they walked out of the bat cave to freshen up.

**{Scene break}**

"So how this works is you say one syllable at a time, the video plays the sentence in syllable format and when you're ready, you can try the regular format."

"….Okay."

Tim and Cass sat on the couch of the main foyer watching an instructional video he had put together for her. She insisted it wasn't necessary for him to repay her for helping him train, But she appreciated the gesture none the less.

"…The chill-dren pl-ayed h-op-sc-otch 2-day at shc-ool."

"Good job, now try it the regular way."

Cassandra took a deep breath and tried her best to combine the syllables.

"…The child-ren… played hops-cotch… today at schoo-l."

"Four out of seven words, not bad."

Truthfully Cassandra was happy that she was making progress, and the feeling was multiplied by the fact that it was Tim who helped her get there. But there were times she still felt trapped within herself.

It was this very reason that she was so drawn to Tim; with him she never had that problem. He could see right into her soul, and the small amount of words she used to express herself was more than enough for him.

"Let's get something to eat, I'm starving. Hopefully Alfred made his cuisine…"

"Tim."

"Yeah."

She placed her arms around him and rested her head against his neck.

"Thank you."

Knowing exactly what she meant, Tim wrapped his arms around Cassandra and returned her embrace.


	6. Chapter 6

"Hey steph. Whoa… you look like hell."

"First off, do you mean a trigger happy brunet with a crossbow hel or the lake of fire hell? And two, it's all your new girlfriend's fault."

"Due tell."

"BB stepped up our training to 11. She had me doing hand stand pushups on a ledge! And don't get me started on the new diet she wants me to start. Spoiler alert; I'm not dropping the waffles."

"You know she means well."

"Yeah I know, just wish she'd take it down a peg."

Batgirl and Red Robin found themselves in a rather chatty mood while swinging from building to building. It had been a while since the last time the two of them went on patrol. That and the big elephant in the room definitely inspired Tim to keep dodging the subject.

"Hey Red Rob, can I ask you something?"

"At the risk of regretting it later, sure."

"When did you and Black Bat hit it off?"

"Cass and I both thought we lost someone that day. We were taking comfort in each other for so long, things just changed."

This was a bit of a sore subject, especially considering the nature in which things unfolded. Before Batgirl seemingly died after a tangle with black mask, she and Tim called it quits after growing apart for some time. For her to come back to the land of the living only to find out her ex and her best friend were now dating was a bit of a shock.

Look, I'm sorry for the way things ended… "

"Don't be, it just wasn't meant to be. If anything, I'm happy for the both of you. Maybe this means Black Bat can put an end to your 'woe is me' fits, lord knows I've tried."

"Tee he…. And thanks."

Suddenly their moment was broken up by a cry for help.

"Somebody do something, people are stuck in that burning building."

When they spotted the source of the cry for help, Red Robin and Batgirl found themselves staring at a burning housing building engulfed in flames. A man and woman stood in front of it in a panicked state.

"Please help us, our family is stuck on the top floor and the fire department is still on its way."

Batgirl and Red Robin burst into action; they grappled up to a window of the second to last floor and crashed through it, landing in a smoke filled hallway.

"Dibs on the top floor tiny Tim."

Batgirl runs up a stairwell to her right before Red Robin could respond

"You always take the top."

In just a couple of minutes they are able to get all the people inside to the roof. By the time they get there, cherry pickers are on sight to escort the people back to the street.

"Thank you so much, we'd all be gone if it weren't for you two."

"We're just doing are job."

After responding in unison, the boy and girl wonder take off into the night.


	7. Chapter 7

"Did you have to accompany me in the acquiring of a new pet Brown? Don't you have homework from your mundane public school education? You could use the study time."

"And miss the sacred ritual of you picking out a new minion? As if. And by the way I'll have you know not only is Gotham high one of the highest rated schools in the state, but I'm in the cream of the crop as far as juniors go."

"I'd hate to see the bottom of the bunch."

Damian was making a mental note to get back at Alfred for this. The butler insisted on the acquisition of a new animal companion despite Damian being completely content with Titus, the Wayne's Great Dane. The debt only doubled when his father agreed with idea and had fatgirl tag along.

"Since you already have a dog, maybe you should get something different little D."

"And you should lay off the waffles and let me decide Fatgirl."

Surprisingly, she just gives him a light jab on the shoulder before pointing to a cage.

"Maybe you can get a parrot."

"No thank you, a parrot may mimic the human speech pattern but it can hardly do anything else. If I'm getting a new companion, its intelligence must reflect my own."

"If that's the case, the parrot is a perfect fit."

"Very funny brown."

They walked down the isle of the pet store until Stephanie pointed to another cage.

"How about a snake? They're pretty smart."

"Not enough limbs."

"Ugh really?"

They walked towards the end of the isle, where Damien came to a stop in front of the last cage. Inside of the cage was a white cat with the brightest shade of green eyes he'd ever seen.

He wasn't sure what it was about this particular creature that drew him in. Maybe it was the way it instantly responded to him by licking his hand as he placed it on the cage wall. Or maybe it was the way the feline moved with such grace, with no motion wasted.

All he knew was that he had found his new companion.

"Aww this one is cute."

"It's not cute, it's my ferocious feline allie. I shall call you Alfred."

As steph giggled at Damian's weird choice of a name, she couldn't help but marvel at the glee in his expression. As he smiled and carried the cage to the cashier, she had been reminded that when you look past his rigid demeanor and hostile personality, Damian was a sweet, caring eleven year old boy. And today she had been lucky enough to see it.

So it was only fitting that after 'Alfred' was paid for, she gave him a big hug.

"What is the meaning of this Brown? Release me at once or I'll stab you!"

She simply rolled her eyes and maintained her grip. Luckily for Damian, she couldn't see him blushing…

"The only reason I'm not stabbing you is because I don't want to stain my clothes."

"Sure it is little d."


End file.
